Light & sound vocabulary · seed 1 · A4, ink-friendly. The answer key prints on its own page for grown-ups.

Talking about light and sound

Science · Waves, Light & Sound · ages 6-8
Name ______________________   Date ____________

  1. Eli wants to make a shadow puppet on the wall. He already has a flashlight. What else does he need?

    • Something opaque, like his hand
    • Something transparent, like clear glass
    • One more flashlight

  2. Sam holds his book up to a lamp. No light shines through it at all. What is the book?

    • It is transparent
    • It is opaque
    • It is translucent

  3. Zoe plucks a rubber band and hears a twang. What made the twang sound?

    • The band moving back and forth after the pluck
    • The band staying still while light shines on it
    • The band changing colour without moving at all

  4. A shadow can form even if there is no light source.

    Circle one:   True   False

  5. You look through a plastic shower curtain and can only see blurry shapes. What is the curtain?

    • Transparent
    • Translucent
    • Opaque

  6. A drummer hits the drum harder than before. What happens to the volume?

    • It gets louder
    • It gets softer
    • It stays the same

  7. Two strings vibrate: one fast, one slow. Which words correctly describe their pitch?

    • Fast means louder; slow means softer
    • Fast and slow give the same pitch
    • Fast means higher; slow means lower

  8. Leo sees a toy clearly through a clear plastic box but calls the box opaque. Which words has he mixed up?

    • Opaque and transparent
    • Translucent and opaque
    • Transparent and translucent
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Answer key

For grown-ups. Fold this page away before handing over the rest.

Talking about light and sound W1-mt_YPSx5pbpVl-s1

  1. Something opaque, like his hand · A shadow needs light plus something that blocks it. Eli's hand is opaque, so it blocks the flashlight beam and makes a puppet shape on the wall.
  2. It is opaque · No light coming through at all is exactly what opaque means. A transparent thing would let the light through clearly, and a translucent thing would let some through.
  3. The band moving back and forth after the pluck · Plucking makes the band wiggle back and forth very fast. That fast wiggle is a vibration, and vibrations make sound.
  4. False · Without a light source, there is no light to block, so no shadow can form.
  5. Translucent · Light passes through the curtain but is scattered, so shapes look blurry. That means the curtain is translucent.
  6. It gets louder · Hitting harder makes bigger vibrations, and bigger vibrations make a louder sound.
  7. Fast means higher; slow means lower · Faster vibrations make a higher pitch, and slower vibrations make a lower pitch, no matter how loud they are.
  8. Opaque and transparent · A clear view through the box shows that it is transparent, not opaque. Leo has mixed up opaque and transparent.
Worksheet · LightMySky